Legacy of Kain Wiki:User:Lord Aevum/PSM issue 19
Archive page}} PSM issue 19 *March 1999 *By TBA and PSM Profile "Kain 2 has finally arrived, and with it comes the first mega-hit of 1999!" Originally Posted by PSM (This Month's Cover) Every issue, we match exciting new games with today's hottest illustrators to create the PSM cover. We take pride in creating quality original artwork, to present our magazine at the highest possible level. When artist Joe Madureira isn't working on his top-selling comic creation "Battle Chasers" or tracking down arcade machines, he finds time to grace our covers. Check the Back Issues section for the two legendary MK4 covers and the awesome RE2 cover. Joe loves gaming on the PlayStation, and his covers show it. Image captions Joe's first sketch depicts a savage Raziel from Legacy of Kain 2 in a striking pose. We loved it close up, but needed to see a bit more of the figure and his unique characteristics. Joe obliges with more Raziel. After inking, the drawing then goes to ace comic colorist, (and another hardcore gamer) Liquid! He does a rough initial coloring, then he really gets busy! Effects are added to give Raziel more dimension. Notice the rendering on the muscles and glow effects on his claws. Liquid! has really outdone himself! Together with Joe, they are quite a team! "Here it is... the final preview!" Originally Posted by PSM (Legacy of Kain) Every once in a while, a game comes through our office that everybody can't wait to play. We've known about Kain 2 since early last year, when even the early screenshots blew us away. Now, as the game approaches its March release date, we are getting even more excited to get our hands on the finished version. This newest version that we've gotten finally has all of the disparate pieces coming together into a more final form and, as usual, we were floored by the new additions that we could play. Besides the insane level geometry, we now can solve many of the puzzles that will be in the final game, as well as fight against some of the bosses. Quite frankly, the game still looks amazing. The sheer size of the world in which you play is awe-inspiring, and each area you go to is unique and eerie. The dark mood is further enhanced by the brooding music which plays in the background. You can't help but be drawn into the game. There are plenty of puzzles that are now seamlessly blended into the environment and each grants Raziel new abilities which will help him progress farther into the game. While many of the puzzles are "move the block" and "pull the switch" types, they are all done within the context of the game, so they never stand out. Even fighting has been enhanced and now you can pull off "finishing" moves with the spear and lift your quivering, bloody opponent off the ground with your weapon. Overall, there's not much new we can add that hasn't already been said, other than this game looks hot! Look for a full review in the next issue. DARK DEMONS The bosses Raziel must face are the seven "generals" who rule under Kain. Over the years, their dark powers have twisted their bodies into objects of horror. THE SHRINES Raziel must seek out mystic shrines to gain the spells he needs. Each shrine has its own puzzles and enemies that must be defeated before Raziel earns its prize. Image captions We have no idea what this clock does, but we'll bet you need to be here at certain times to witness certain events. Raziel is the "hero" of Legacy of Kain. His mission is to exterminate all the vampires in Nosgoth. This boss is a mass of flesh constructed from dozens of different bodies. Now he wants to add Raziel to the mix. Beat a boss and you gain its special ability. This Aluka boss grants Kain the ability to breathe underwater. The city dwellers will react to your presence by either giving you information or attacking you, depending on how you've treated them in the past. After a few slashes, you can impale your opponent and pick them off the ground with a dramatic finishing move. Souls give Raziel his power, and with each opponent he defeats, he gets just a little stronger. The shrines are all beautiful to behold and they house the secrets Raziel needs to beat the game. Raziel must successfully solve a puzzle completing the wall mural around this shrine to earn its reward. One of the powers Raziel earns in the game is called Constrict and it allows him to kill opponents by circling them with this blue trail. The Soul Reaver is Raziel's weapon of choice and it can be enchanted with magical powers at the various forges found throughout Nosgoth. "The world of Nosgoth is a large and dangerous place. In the first part of our Kain 2 strategy coverage, we blow out all of the different abilities, spells and Soul Forges and tell you exactly what they do for you in your quest for vengeance." Originally Posted by PSM (Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver strategy guide, part one) ABILITIES Raziel will earn a wide variety of new abilities as he works his way towards exterminating the vampire clans from Nosgoth. The following is a list of all the special abilities, where to find them, and who you'll have to beat to get them. • Pass Through Gates Raziel's first acquired move is the ability to pass through gates in the spectral plane. Raziel can now phase through otherwise impassable barriers like fences, gates and grates by going into the spectral plane and pushing against them. After a moment, Raziel will "dematerialize" a bit and phase through to the other side. To get this ability, Raziel must defeat the leader of the Skinner clan, named Melchiah. He can be found deep in the area known as Melchahim. • Scale Walls Next, Raziel acquires the ability to scale otherwise impassable walls. Now, when he jumps onto a wall surface, he grabs on with his claws. Because his hands are otherwise engaged, Raziel can't engage in combat while scaling a wall - he has to avoid enemies, or dispatch them before climbing the wall. Only certain wall types are scalable - generally rough, organic, crumbly or mortared stone walls are impossible to climb (Raziel can't get good enough purchase with his claws). Only smooth walls are scalable. This ability is earned by defeating Zephon, the clan leader of the Zephonim. These wall crawlers can be found in the Silenced Cathedral. • Telekinetic Force Projectile About one third of the way into the game, Raziel will need to seek out the secret area which will give him a new projectile ability. Raziel can gather a ball of telekinetic energy and shoot the sphere out at enemies or other objects. On impact, the bad guys (and other pushable objects) are shoved backward. Fragile or breakable elements (e.g., windows, wooden barriers) are shattered by the impact of the force projectile as well. The projectile itself does no damage, but enemies can be forced into damaging or fatal environmental elements (e.g., slammed into a wall, pushed off an edge into water, pushed into fire, spikes, etc.). • Swimming In the first third to half of the game, Raziel is unable to swim. Immersion in water (in the material plane) immediately causes him to shift into the spectral plane. While in spectral, he can walk on lakebeds, canal floors, etc., but he can't reach higher areas. Once he earns the ability to swim, however, the world opens way up. Previously unreachable tunnels and platforms are now attainable and the world of Nosgoth becomes that much more accessible. The boss of the Aluka clan, Rahab, holds this ability and to find him, you must go to the Drowned Abbey. • Constrict About one half to two thirds of the way through the game, Raziel will find his way into the ruined city of the Dumahim and defeat the clan leader Dumah for this ability. Constrict allows Raziel to encircle enemies and objects with different effects. This ability works both in material and spectral, though objects can't be constricted in spectral, only enemies. After making one complete revolution (by running) around a constrictable object or enemy, Raziel begins to trail a constricting band of energy. When Raziel has made a second successful revolution around the target object/enemy, the band squeezes down, constricting the victim (or target object). Constricted enemies are immediately reduced to a stunned/damaged state (low-level humans are killed). Constrictable objects can be turned using the constrict ability 0 e.g., a gear can be turned, a sundial rotated; a lens turned to point a specific direction. Constrictable objects can be rotated clockwise or counter-clockwise, depending on the direction Raziel runs when he constricts them. • Shift At Will About two thirds of the way through the game, Raziel will discover (in a secret area) the ability to shift between spectral and material at will; he no longer needs to find a planar portal to shift into the material plane. He still needs to be at full health, however. With the ability to shift at will, the game opens way up for the player. Raziel can now access the Sound Forge, the Sound Glyph Altar, and the Force Glyph Altar, as well as now being able to get inside the mysterious Undercity lair of the vampire worshippers. Other secrets and bonus areas are also now open. • Possess After Raziel finds his way into the dark undercity complex of the vampire worshippers and defeats their high priestess, he gets the ability to project his soul energy out (as a projectile), and possess another creature. Once in the host creature's body, Raziel can perform rudimentary operations - he can move around the area, attack other creatures, and do other simple actions, like pushing blocks/objects or hitting switches. While occupying the host creature's body, Raziel's physical body goes into a protected stasis state (with an energy shield around it). Raziel can occupy the host's body indefinitely, but can only stray so far from his own body. If he wanders too far away, his soul energy will start to pull out of the host creature's body. If the player continues to wander away, the tenuous link is broken, and Raziel's soul returns to his body. The creature then recovers and comes back to its senses. The player can also return to Raziel's body at any time. • Amplified Force Projectile The last ability Raziel will earn can be found in the lair of the Turelim. After defeating Turel, their leader, Raziel acquires an amplification of his existing Telekinetic Force projectile. The projectile now pushes enemies further, and the impact reduces them to a stunned/damaged state. More substantial objects can be pushed or broken with the amplified projectile. THE SOUL REAVER AND FORGES The Soul Reaver is the only weapon in the game (other than the "found" weapons, like spears and torches). Rather than having Raziel collect a varied arsenal of weapon types, the Soul Reaver itself evolves over the course of the game, acquiring different (and more powerful) attributes. Raziel acquires the Soul Reaver at the Pillars of Nosgoth. Raziel's first confrontation with Kain occurs at The Pillars. Kain wields the Soul Reaver blade, as he did at the end of the first game. In the course of their battle, the blade is destroyed in the material plane, transforming it into a wraith blade. In this form, the blade is useless to Kain (since he is a material being), but Raziel, being a creature of the spirit plane, adopts the Soul Reaver in its spectral form. From the moment Raziel grasps it, the Soul Reaver becomes his symbiotic weapon and constant companion. Raziel now will always carry the Soul Reaver while in the spectral plane. When in the material plane, Raziel remains in his "unequipped" state, except when he's at full health. When Raziel's energy is full, the Soul Reaver becomes manifest in the material plane as a writhing energy blade. As long as Raziel stays at full health, the blade remains (and it sustains Raziel's energy, which would normally be draining constantly due to the strain of maintaining physical form). As long as Raziel doesn't get damaged, the blade remains active. Over the course of the game, Raziel can find various elemental forges hidden throughout Nosgoth. By baptizing the Soul Reaver in an elemental forge, the blade becomes forged with that element. Once forged, the blade can be re-imbued with that element, if found in the environment. For example: if Raziel has visited the Sunlight Forge, the Soul Reaver is now baptized with sunlight. When the Soul Reaver becomes activated in the material plane, it always manifests in its default form (generic spectral energy), but if Raziel can find a source of sunlight (i.e., a shaft of sunlight), he can pass the blade through it and re-imbue the Soul Reaver with the power of sunlight. The blade will then stay imbued as long as it remains active. • Default Soul Reaver A single hit with the default Soul Reaver blade or projectile immediately puts vampires and high-level humans into a stunned state, after which they go into a standard damaged state (for a period of time until they heal/recover). Low-level humans are destroyed. • Sunlight Reaver Once Raziel has visited the Sunlight Forge and baptized the Reaver in the elemental altar, the blade has the potential to be imbued with sunlight whenever it appears in the environment. Once manifest in the material plane, the blade can be imbued with sunlight by passing it through a shaft of light. A single hit with the Sunlight Reaver blade stuns the enemy; a second blow kills (burning the enemy, as though by conventional sunlight). An enemy struck only once will advance to a damaged state, then eventually recover. On the second (killing) blow, the impact of the blade causes a bright flash, with a small radius effect. Adjacent enemies are temporarily blinded (effectively stunned). • Water Reaver Once Raziel has visited the Water Forge and baptized the Reaver in the elemental altar, the blade has the potential to be imbued with water. When manifest in the material plane, the blade can be imbued with water by passing it through running water (e.g., fountains, spouts, waterfalls). A single blow with the Water Reaver blade stuns the enemy; a second blow kills (as though the enemy were burned by immersing it in water). An enemy struck only once will advance to a damaged state, then eventually recover. The Water Reaver projectile does water (e.g., burning acid) damage to a single enemy, stunning/damaging it. GLYPHS (SPELLS) There are seven Glyph Altars hidden throughout Nosgoth. Each ancient altar is associated with an elemental "glyph" (or spell). Once Raziel has solved the puzzle of the Glyph Altar, he is awarded that elemental glyph - he essentially memorizes it, and it goes permanently into his glyph spell menu. The Glyph spells invoke powerful elemental energies, and cause damage to multiple enemies with varying radius - or area - effects. To cast the different spells, Raziel must expend energy in the form of glyph "points" - collectibles which are scattered throughout the game environments. A low-level spell might only cost one glyph point; a high-level spell could cost 6 or more. The Glyph spells are listed below in the order that Raziel will most likely discover the various Glyph Altars. • Plane Shift This spell allows Raziel to shift between the Spectral Plane and Material Plane. For most of the game (Until the Shift at Will ability is earned), Raziel can only change Planes at designated planar portals. Also, Raziel can only go to the Material plane when he is at full health. Being able to shift between the planes at will is far better than looking for the portals. • Sunlight Glyph When Raziel casts this glyph spell, the room is filled with a flash of blindingly bright sunlight. All enemies in the area are temporarily blinded (essentially stunned). Having blinded his enemies, Raziel can either escape the area, or can easily inflict fatal blows on them (since they are effectively in a stunned/damaged state). This is the weakest of the glyphs. • Stone Glyph Raziel slams his fist into the floor, causing a localized earthquake effect. All enemies in the affected area are reduced to a damaged state by the violence of the spell's effect. Raziel can now easily inflict fatal blows on any damaged vampires. While technically weaker than some of the later glyph spells (since it only damages enemies, but doesn't kill them), it has a larger range of effect • Water Glyph The glyph's magic explodes into the room, creating a watery downpour that causes acid-type damage to all vampire enemies within a radius of the spell's epicenter. The water glyph spell doesn't kill enemies, but reduces all water-vulnerable vampires within the spell's radius to a damaged state. As with any other damaged state, the enemies will recover to full health after a prescribed amount of time. Until then, they're vulnerable to fatal attacks. • Fire Glyph The spell emanates outward in rings of fire, igniting all enemies in its wake (killing both vampires and humans). • Sound Glyph Deadly (to vampires) waves of sound emanate out from the spell's epicenter. Vampires that are struck by the expanding waves of sound are disrupted, shattering them like crystal. Humans are unaffected. • Force Glyph Waves of telekinetic force rush out from the spell's epicenter, knocking all affected enemies backward as they're impacted. Telekinetically flung enemies may end up damaged or destroyed, depending on what they're flung into. An enemy may be slammed into a wall (stunning/damaging it), or onto spikes, into water, through a window, etc. (killing it). • Spirit Glyph The glyph spell creates a localized vortex of soul-sucking energy, tearing the souls out of any enemies within a prescribed radius. The souls are magnetized directly into Raziel, replenishing his health energy. Image captions References Browse Category:Archive Category:Archive/Print